The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of lily plant, botanically known as Lilium l., and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99.
xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 is a product of a planned breeding program which had the objective of creating new lily cultivars having many large erect flowers and vigorous growth.
xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 was originated from a hybridization made by the inventor in a controlled breeding program in Rijnsburg, the Netherlands in 1992. The male and female parents were unnamed seedlings of Lilium l. oriental hybrids. Both parents are proprietary cultivars used in the breeding program.
xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 was discovered and selected as one flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross by the inventor, Cees A. van der Voort, in the months of May and June 1992 in a controlled environment in Rijnsburg, the Netherlands.
The first act of asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 was accomplished when scales were taken from the initial selection in October 1994 in a controlled environment in Rijnsburg, the Netherlands by, or under the supervision of, Cees A. van der Voort. Horticultural examination of selected units initiated in May, 1994 has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be basic characteristics of xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 which in combination distinguish this lily as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. large flowers;
2. erect to vertical flowers arranged in a longitudinal axis;
3. red-purple color with contrasting orange pollen and marking and spots on the inner side of the throat; and
4. vigorous growth habit.
xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99 has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype of the new cultivar may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity, and daylength without any change in genotype. The following observations, measurements, and comparisons describe plants grown in the experimental research station CPRO-DLO, Wageningen, the Netherlands under conditions which approximate those generally used in commercial practice.
Of the many commercial cultivars known to the present inventor, no other cultivars are similar in comparison to xe2x80x98Rousillonxe2x80x99.